272/Swords or.. staves!

Swords or.. staves!
Date of Scene:	21 August 2023
Location:	Sports Pavilion
Synopsis:	Naru learns about the wonders of fighting with polearms from Kyouka. And a bit of magical philosphy for good measure.
Cast of Characters:	Naru Osaka, Kyouka Inai

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Naru Osaka has posed:
It's still summer break. There's a few students on campus, but not a whole lot, and certainly even fewer in the class areas of the school. Dining halls? Dorms? Even the library? A few more people, but most of the classrooms are pretty quiet. The sports pavilion seems to go in waves of interest and activity, and today its pretty quiet.

Other than a single student who has found herself a corner of one of the fields, not so far from the bleachers.

Naru has herself a good sturdy stick, and her tablet propped up on the bleachers, gamely trying to follow a youtube video about basic kendo. She's probably watched it a couple of times already, as she's quietly muttering to herself about what comes next, and while her movements aren't fluid yet, she's not bad at keeping up with the very beginner video.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    It's a fair gamble as to whether Kyouka will appear on campus any given day over break. She does have some appointments still, though they tend to be fairly sparse, and she also finds her office a convenient, quiet place to work out of when she needs to Get Shit Done, so she's often found at the school at least a few days a week.

    This appears to be one of those days. Maybe she's checking up on something for upcoming Self-Defense Classes, which would explain why she is crossing the large sports pavilion, generally headed in the direction of the storage rooms. She's not in her workout clothes, but rather a pretty standard jeans-and-t-shirt combo, casual summer wear since she's not 'on duty'.

    She notices Naru off in the corner swinging a sword around, though, and her interest is piqued enough to deviate from her course and wander closer. "Osaka-san," She calls out in greeting, with a cheerful grin. "You know they do have classes for that sort of thing, if you're really interested."

Naru Osaka has posed:
There's a pause as someone calls her name and Naru startles just a touch, her 'sword' wobbling as she looks over and then she lets it fall from the position she was holding it in. Possibly with some relief, no matter that it's only a stick, holding things up for a while gets tiring quickly when you're not used to it.

"Inai-sensei." Naru leans on the stick a moment. "I.. er.. hello. Yes." she nods, trying to look chill about having been 'caught'. Not that she's doing anything wrong.

"They do, although sorting out how to fit those into my schedule is a little bit of a /thing/." Naru admits and then adds after just a moment. "And I wanted to make sure that I still enjoyed it, before trying to sort out the scheduling. When it's just work and there's no adrenaline encouragement."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "That's fair." Kyouka agrees to the notion of wanting to make sure you're actually really interested in a thing before you commit your precious time to it. She pauses a few steps away, arms folding as she regards the student before her. "If you want some advice from me," glancing at the stick, and then what she can see of the video, "Kendo is great for exercise and discipline, but it's of limited use in an actual fight. It's been ceremonialized and, for lack of a better term, sport-ized to the point where although it had its origins in actual swordfighting, the techniques will now win you Kendo matches but not actual swordfights most of the time."

    She smiles. "Which isn't to say it's a bad place to start. But if you're actually interested in defending yourself, as I suspect is your motivation given your history of wrong-place-wrong-time incidents lately, then you're going to want to look beyond what these sorts of videos and classes can teach you pretty quickly."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Advice welcome." Naru doesn't hestitate to assure as she listens, nodding slowly as Kyouka outlines some of the challenges with Kendo.

"There's also the challenge of not actually being able to have a weapon with me." Naru's expression is rueful on that point. "Weirdly, the Japanese government is not fond of handing out swords to fourteen year olds."

"Still, I was talking about it with Kazuo, and he brought up the point about having enough experience and practice to use what's at hand, so it feels relevant still." Naru gestures at the video, still running behind their conversation. "This at least gets some of the muscles warmed up, until I figure out what to do next."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "Well, not to be discouraging," Kyouka notes while glancing at the stick, "But something like that, or a Kendo sword, or even a real katana, isn't going to do you much good against the sort of.. adversaries you seem to be wanting to defend against, regardless of your level of skill. That said.."

    She taps her lip, thinking. "If you were serious about wanting an avenue to defend yourself, we could probably get you an enchanted sword, or whatever. Something like that. Then at least it would be able to do some damage, should you get into a tight spot. The matter of transportation could potentially be similarly solved. Normally I wouldn't suggest something like that to a mundane, no offense, but the fact that you can see and retain knowledge about magic indicates you have some kind of latent potential, whatever that may be."

    "Don't get me wrong, I'm not encouraging reckless behavior here. Without actual magic, even with an enchanted weapon I would caution you against actively seeking out trouble. But I totally understand the desire to have some means to defend yourself when all other options seem to fail."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I'd of gotten a kendo sword out, but the club supply locker is locked." Naru points out on the topic of her stick versus a kendo sword. "I have no illusions that this is going to do much against anything." She quirks a half smile at that reality. "And no.. I'm not magic. I'm just me, but yes.. I can see, and remember it all." Which wasn't really in doubt anymore, other than the 'does Naru actually have magic of her own' question. Nada. Zip.

"I borrowed a magic sword in the last fight." Naru explains. "And it was a lot more effective, which is why I'm actually trying to find some muscles rather than pathetic noodle arms, if it happens again." She gives a shrug. "I don't have a deep desire to go find things that have a desperate urge to drain all of my energy, but they are pretty good at finding me." Naru adds after a moment. "At least the paralysed one seems to have been an oddity, rather than the norm. That's reassuring."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka nods her head. "Well, that's what I'm talking about." She points out. "Even if you don't have any 'powers', so to speak, if you can see, remember, and wield magical weapons, that means that you could make use of one. And like I said, I have contacts that could probably get you one.. although I think that's probably best to wait until you get some more basic training under your belt. No offense, but it wouldn't be very 'responsible teacher' of me to encourage you to run around with an enchanted katana before making sure you won't cut your own arm off by accident."

    She chuckles, with a shrug. "I'd offer to give you some lessons, but swordplay isn't really my specialty. I'm more of a polearm gal.. spears, naginatas, quarterstaffs, anything like that. That said, if you're interested I can certainly help you in the realms of general fitness.. and maybe some basics of surviving a fight that aren't sword-specific. Although you should be getting at least some of that from the self-defense classes already, I hope."

Naru Osaka has posed:
There is not any comment about Kyouka cosplaying a 'responsible teacher' other than a faint smirk before Naru nods. "That was my plan, to building up some muscles and fitness and then sort out the sword issue." She hadn't, honestly, actually considered that she might be able to get HELP with the sword issue. Independant git that she tends to be.

"Self defense class is kicking my butt on the regular into better shape, I can confirm that." Naru wrinkles her nose with the fondness of someone who goes to the library for fun towards fitness. At least stereotypically. "Although I'm open to other weapons as well, I just actually got to try a sword, so I'm focused there. I've never tried a polearm."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka shrugs her shoulders. "It's a whole different animal, in a lot of ways, despite the fact that a naginata is basically a sword on the end of a long stick. But even without the blade, knowing how to fight with a quarterstaff, otherwise known as a 'really long stick' is a pretty easy place to start, and surprisingly applicable to a lot of more advanced weapons."

    She nods towards the stick that Naru is currently holding, which is more along the lines of 'sword length'. But there's not a ton of overlap between weapons like that and a sword. The advantage of a polearm is, obviously, reach and versatility. The advantage of something more like a sword is agility and flexibility. Both have their uses, though someone sufficiently skilled in either will be able to do okay in most situations, in my experience."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"I mean.. at this point in .. well.. everything." Naru clearly isnt' quite sure how to phrase it. It's not her 'magical career'.. she doens't have one of those per se. "It feels like learning more rather than less is a feature. I don't know what's ahead. Maybe I'll start forgetting everything again?"

Naru glances down at her stick and considers it as Kyouka talks about different weapon forms. "Reach has decided appeal. It's why I throw things as often as not. I don't really WANT to get up close and personal with things that are aspiring to remove my hit points, or mana, or both. But sword was what I was offered, so sword was what I used."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "I doubt you're going to be forgetting things again, at least without some kind of interference." Kyouka says, with a shrug of her shoulders. "I'm not saying it's impossible, but generally in my experience the Veil is a one-way door- once you're beyond it there's no going back, for better or for worse."

    "Well, if you wanted try a quarterstaff instead.." Kyouka says, turning to start walking towards the storage rooms that were her original destination anyway, "I'm pretty sure I have some practice staves in storage. Staff might not seem very exciting, but its a necessary prerequisite towards starting with any of the weapons which are basically the same thing, only with a sharp bit fastened to the end."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"That's weirdly reassuring." Naru comments on the topic of the Veil being a one way door. "Although if I forgot everything again, I'd have forgotten and not know that I didn't know, so I wouldn't be upset. But the me who does know is glad, even if it's messy and confusing and frustrating. I'm glad I know."

Naru reaches to collect her tablet, the video long since having ended and the wee computer having gone to sleep. She follows after Kyouka towards the storage rooms. "I'm pretty open to trying just about anything, to be honest. I'm alright with boring prerequisites, generally. I do math homework willingly."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "It's always better to know than not to know." Kyouka agrees, nodding her head. "Even if knowing is scary, and sometimes it might seem like the worse option. I'd still rather have the frightening truth than a reassuring lie."

    She snorts her amusement at the comment about math homework, as she reaches the storage rooms and uses a key from her pocket to open them up. "Well, that's a point in your favor then. A lot of kids your age just want to leap right to the fun and exciting and dangerous parts, not realizing they are a lot less fun and exciting if you skip the parts that teach you how to safely handle them."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"As trite as it sounds, I'm discovering that I'm not a lot like other kids my age." Naru pauses a moment to consider that. "In a lot of ways that I didn't really expect." She glances to Kyouka and then towards the storage rooms and all of the fun and dull things within. "Exchange students are /weird/." Its an off handed comment, but provided with solid emphatis.

"My noodle arms, and the bruises from the last fight are providing a great deal of insistance that we get some of the basics down before the next chunk of 'fun' and 'exciting'." Naru's expression is rueful. "Although at least I didn't break anything, so that's a feature. Bruises heal faster than that at least."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "Oh, I'm not like the other kids, I'm so much more mature and special," Kyouka mimics, with a good-natured laugh. "You know, I think a lot of teenagers have similar thoughts. But in your case, I might believe them. Or at least some of them. You certainly seem to have a good head on your shoulders, Osaka-san, and I think it's my responsibility to encourage that. This city needs more people who think with their brains, rather than their hearts. Or perhaps with both, but with a clear recognition of the difference."

    Inside the storage room, she pokes around until she finds her selection of practice staves, or quarterstaffs, leaning against the wall. "A good staff should be slightly longer than you are tall. You're pretty short, Osaka-san, so hopefully we can find one that isn't so large as to be unwieldy.."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Right!?" Naru laughs. "It sounded trite and /so/ childish as soon as it was coming out of my mouth, but here we are. I mean.. I /am/ still fourteen. Closer to fifteen, but i'm not sure that helps."

Naru tries to pretend like she's not tiny, and it doesn't work any better than any other time. Her sigh is heavy, and very 'shortest in my class'. "Usagi is beating me by 2 cm." As if that's the true tragedy here. "I still have hope I'll catch up, but so far it requires heels to catch up." She considers the various practice staves, and the fact that all in the front at least, are far too tall for her.

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "I don't recommend practicing fighting of any sort in heels, despite what the movies may have shown you." Kyouka says wryly, as she digs in the pile and comes up with one which is only slightly taller than ideal, rather than way too tall. She hands it to Naru, then considers it while the girl is holding it upright beside her. "That'll do for starters. We can always cut one down to ideal length but I'd want it done properly."

    She grabs one for herself, larger than Naru's but not by a whole lot (she's only 5'2" herself, remember) before heading back out to the place where Naru had been practicing. "C'mon, I'll show you a few forms you can practice, at the very least. And then you can decide what you like more."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Magic doesn't give you the ability to jump around in wedges and not break an ankle? That feels like a rip off." Naru snickers softly and then adds. "Ahh, but you said practice. That's fair. Practice is sensible." She gestures down at her own perfectly reasonable sneakers. No extra cm for Naru today.

Naru takes the staff and follows Kyouka back out to the field. Her tablet, closed now, goes back to waiting on the bleachers, and her 'sword' gets to hang out with it. It's a good stick! She mimics how Kyouka holds her staff, because she's a good schoolkid. "Things I can practice at odd times, those are useful to me. I keep a pretty solid schedule."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "Oh, I'm sure some of it does, but magic is a lot like genetics... you can never really be sure what you're gonna get. At least, that's my experience." Kyouka says with a hint of dry humor to her voice. "You learn to use what you got, rather than attempting to force it to comply to your expectations."

    Once out on the field, Kyouka spins the stave around her arm, snapping it back into a 'ready' position such that she's holding it near one end in her hand, with the shaft extending back alongside the underside of her arm and protruding back behind her. "The trick to using a staff," She says, "Is to realize the intent is to never let the opponent close enough to hit you with their weapon, which hopefully is shorter." She demonstrates a few quick strikes, bringing either end of the staff around to either left or right to ward off imagined attacks. "That's the goal, anyway. For you, building stamina and learning not to hit yourself with the other end is the initial goal. Start by holding it out in front of yourself, like this." She demonstrates.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Not hitting myself, and not hitting anything around me that I wasn't planning to hit." Naru amends the goals. "And stamina." She can't argue with that. Not when she's already found out the hard way just how HARD holding something out in front of you is for any length of time. And her stick was smaller and lighter than this staff is.

Still, she holds it out in front of her as directed by Kyouka. This is going to be embarassing for a slight, minimally muscled Naru, but one has to start somewhere.

Naru is clearly mulling on the magic thing, still. Probably a lot of her background brain power goes there, to be honest. "I'm slowly realizing that there's a lot more diversity in people's magic than I gave credit for."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    "Magic is just like anything else," Kyouka says, with a shrug. "Lots of different kinds for lots of different people. You say 'magic' as if it's some unified system or property, but really 'magic' is just a catchall phrase for 'energies and the manipulations thereof which exist outside the perception of most humans and therefore outside the bounds of accepted science'. I can't tell you how it all works- that's not really my wheelhouse. But I bet you there's rules and principles to magic the same way there are to.. I dunno, particle physics or fluid dynamics or whatever. I'm just not sure many people have invested the research to understand them. Anyway, the point is that while there's undoubtedly commonality, saying 'magic' is the same as saying 'dancing' or 'cooking'. There's a lot of different sorts, and most of them bear only superficial similarities to each other."

    She shows Naru how to do some simple excercises with the staff, alternating striking the air with either end, almost like punching but while holding the stick between both hands and moving one forward and the other back.

Naru Osaka has posed:
"That would be the coolest independant research, and the hardest to actually do any sort of research on." Naru's brain is whirring away on possibilities while her body is busy trying to follow Kyouka's instructions with the staff.

So far, she hasn't hit herself in the head with the staff, which is a feature. Naru has tripped herself a couple of times, being where the back end of the staff was going to go, but she corrects herself and relatively easily when she does, sorting out her own body positioning.

"That took me a little while to sort out, that it wasn't just one big commonality." Naru comments after she's had a few moments to think about staves rather than philosophy. "Understandably, there's a lot of secrecy, and everyone talks in code. It's hard to sort out what's going on."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka continues to show Naru some simple excercises, correcting her posture or grip when need be. Nothing so advanced as actual strikes or blocks, just various movements designed to help the body get used to the length of the stave and getting a sense for where the ends are, while also building up some stamina for holding it. At the same time, she continues to talk as well.

    "All the secrecy and code are relics from the past, I think, which don't really have a place in the modern era. But it wasn't always the way it is now. There used to be a lot less magically-inclined people around, and I think when they were rarer, there was more of an emphasis on protecting yourself and your own. RHA has done a lot to change that, and it's good in my opinion."

Naru Osaka has posed:
For someone tiny who doesn't work out on the regular, plain old active teenager gets Naru surprisingly far in stamina and holding the staff. Middle aged her would be very jealous. She is an attentive student, working through the basics to get them settled before changing to something different. She really is the kid who does review problems even when she knows them just to reinforce things. Rare, but they exist!

"RHA feels like its pulled all sorts of weird all into one location." Naru comments as she carefully moves through one movement that she keeps getting /almost/ right, but not quite. "Shake liberally and see what happens." She adds after a moment. "I'm not wholly sure why I got an invitation, but I'm glad to be here." She adds after a moment. "Our last school was less dramatic, but also kinda boring."

Kyouka Inai has posed:
    Kyouka shrugs.. mostly just standing back and watching Naru, at this point, holding her own staff in a relaxed position beside her. "I don't pretend to know the ultimate motivations of the people in charge, but I do know it's intentional. To be frank, you probably got an invite because you're associated with Usagi Tsukino.. although it wouldn't surprise me to find out there were other reasons as well." Another shrug.

    "It looks like you have the basics down, at least enough to continue to do some excercises on your own." She smiles. "I need to get back to what I was doing. But feel free to ask me for help anytime, whether at class or just in free time. I'm always happy to support someone wanting to better their chances in a fight." She turns to walk back towards the storage room to put her own staff back. "Have a good afternoon, Osaka-san."

Naru Osaka has posed:
"Thank you, Inai-sensei!" Naru really does sound delighted at having her own staff to practice with and some idea on what, exactly, she should be practicing.

Suffice to say, this corner of the field might have a semi-regular visitor, at least until things get super busy when school starts up again.